Christin Khan is currently flying for the NOAA Northeast Fisheries Science Center right whale aerial survey team based out of Woods Hole, Massachusetts. She has previously led right whale aerial surveys with Wildlife Trust and the Provincetown Center for Coastal Studies. Christin completed her Master of Science in Biology at San Francisco State University with research on vocal development in harbor seals; her work was published in the Journal of the Acoustical Society of America.

Saturday, November 28, 2009

Georgia welcomes right whales back

coastalcourier.com | Nov. 28, 2009

"BRUNSWICK — It is seen from a research vessel lookout — a solitary V-shaped “blow” and then something dark on the water’s surface.

Often, the return of right whales to Georgia is as subtle as that. But this winter, thanks to a new ruling, more of these imperiled whales will have a better chance at making the annual journey safely.

In October 2008, the National Marine Fisheries Service established a rule that will implement speed restrictions for vessels 65 feet or longer. The restrictions call for a speed of no more than 10 knots during certain times of the year in areas designated as critical right whale habitat along the U.S. Atlantic seaboard. The rule went into effect last Dec. 9. While recognized during the 2008-09 calving season, this will be the first year the rule will be enforced by law enforcement.

Biologists with the Georgia Department of Natural Resources and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration are spreading the word about the rule while gearing up for the first sightings of these aquatic giants.It’s not only commercial ships that cause mortal injuries to right whales. Fishing boats and other large personal recreational watercraft can also have a devastating impact on the whales, which are found as close as three miles offshore depending on water depth. Although larger recreational boats are not required to adhere to the commercial speed limit, the NOAA recommends they heed the rule as well.

North Atlantic right whales spend the summer in the cooler waters off New England and Canada. Each fall, a portion of the population returns to Georgia and Florida for the winter. Annual research done by the DNR Wildlife Resources Division and NOAA from December through March is helping wildlife biologists determine the status of these endangered animals.

Approximately 200 right whales were seen off the Georgia coast during the 2008-09 season. The total included 39 sets of mother and calf pairs — a record — as well as juveniles and single animals. Whales are counted using aerial surveys and on-the-water monitoring.

2009 marked the second straight year since 2005 that no adult mortalities were reported. There were two reported calf mortalities last season, both from unknown causes. 2008-09 also included five whales entangled in commercial fishing gear. DNR, NOAA and other partners managed to free all but one.

Researchers identify right whales by the unique pattern of callosities, or rough patches of skin, found on the whales’ heads and around their mouths. These patches are usually covered with whale lice, crustaceans that make the patches appear white. Photographs are used to tell which whale is being observed.

Right whales are baleen whales with a bow-shaped lower jaw and a head that is up to one-quarter of the body length. Calves weigh approximately 1 ton at birth and adults can reach 60 tons and almost 50 feet in length. They have no dorsal fin and breathe through two blowholes on the top of their heads. These blowholes create a unique V-shaped blow, which also helps researchers identify the whales from a distance.Right whales were nearly driven to extinction by commercial whaling in the late 19th century. Commercial harvest was banned in 1935. Today the North Atlantic right whale is classified as endangered under U.S. and Georgia law. Right whales are listed as a priority species in Georgia’s State Wildlife Action Plan, the blueprint for conservation in the state. Georgia adopted the right whale as its state mammal in 1985.

Although not hunted now, right whales face conservation problems including ship strikes, entanglement in commercial fishing gear and habitat destruction. Even after nearly 50 years of protected status, there are only an estimated 300 to 400 North Atlantic right whales left."